The Out-of-Favor Native Persimmon Tree Has a Rich History in Florida

How poorly did Hernando de Soto and his fellow conquistadores think of Florida upon arrival? Well, simply put, Florida’s dreadful flora and fauna made founding states like Massachusetts and Virginia look tame in comparison.

The fruit of the native persimmon tree (Diospyros virginiana) contributed to this unpleasant experience, evoking passionate responses in an account from the very first Florida expedition. The astringency of the unripe persimmon caused mouths to turn and lips to pucker, but first impressions are not everything.

Persimmons constituted a cultural catchall, as they were used by Native Americans, consumed by early English, French, and Spanish settlers, and then utilized for furniture, booze, candies, breads, coffee, and even golf clubs.

A Southern staple

The native persimmon was a Southern staple and remained a symbol of the South until the end of the 19th century, which brought the introduction of the much preferred Japanese persimmon. Most folks now consider the native persimmon – a fruit tree with an abundance of cultural, culinary, and medicinal properties – a nuisance. So, what are we missing about the native persimmon?

The native persimmon’s growth ranges from about 20 to 100 feet tall and 25 to 35 feet wide, depending on its genetics, soil types, and sunlight. The tree tolerates varying moisture conditions. A member of the ebony family, the wood is dark, but also quite hard and heavy.

The dark green oval leaves turn a beautiful burnt orange or brick red color in the fall before shedding entirely. Only female trees bear fruit and multiple nearby trees increase the yield. Bright orange fruit hangs from the barren tree in the late fall and early winter. The native persimmon’s upright growth habit and checkered bark, resembling alligator skin, make it an attractive addition to any landscape.

Medicinal properties of choke-fruit

Persimmon likely comes from the Algonquian word pos, meaning choke, and the suffix from men, meaning fruit. Quite literally: choke-fruit. Indigenous people ate the fruit fresh, dried, and incorporated into bread loaves which they served to settlers.

Indigenous children and adults entertained themselves with a game that used persimmon seeds like dice. Highly sought after for its medicinal properties, different parts of the persimmon tree treated multiple maladies including fever, dropsy, diphtheria, and venereal diseases.

The astringency of the fruit made it a valuable antiseptic in the treatment of wounds. Some made syrups, vinegar, inks, and dyes from persimmons. Inventive Americans, from immigrant entrepreneurs to industrious enslaved families, brewed persimmon beer, wine, and brandy.

During the Civil War, Southern citizens used persimmon seeds for their buttons and their morning brews. Wartime blockades limited Southerners’ access to coffee and put coffee lovers of the South in dire straits. Out of desperation, they roasted persimmon seeds instead of coffee beans.

Newspapers reported that long-time coffee drinkers noted little difference in flavor. Woodworkers valued the persimmon for its weight and hardiness. Persimmon wood could be found at the head of a golf club, a gun stock, mallet, or chisel handle.

Prized by wildlife

Wild animals, above all, prized the plentiful persimmon – birds, squirrels, and bears, oh my. You might still hear some folks refer to persimmon trees as “possum wood,” and for good reason.

Raccoons and opossums, in particular, descended (and ascended) upon the persimmon fruit. People frequently found the furry bandits climbing up their persimmon trees, so much so that multiple folk songs recalled the sight. Here is one excerpt from an old field song:

Possum in a ‘simmon tree,

Raccoon on de groun’,

Raccoon ask de possum

To shake dem ‘simmons down.

This sight and the sight of the persimmon tree, altogether, began to lessen though. Just as de Soto and company encountered the “New World” and its new foods, the great plant and food exchange worked both ways.

By the 20th century, increased trade and transportation opened Americans’ access to more favored fruit trees, relegating the persimmon to a minor fruit unable to soar to the heights of apples and oranges. In addition, the New World traded its native persimmon for the Japanese persimmon.

The native persimmon tree still persists in the landscape of the Southeast, and, I hope, will return to prominence once again. The next time you need to plant a tree, consider taking home a living piece of history with the purchase of a native persimmon.

Jenna Noel Pope is the herb, vegetable, and social media manager at Native Nurseries. She holds a Bachelors and Masters in History from FSU.

Seek and Destroy Skunk Vine in Your Yard

Skunk vine is more noticeable when it is flowering. Photo by Chris Evans, University of Illinois, Bugwood.org.

Skunk vine (Paederia foetida) is an invasive vine that is spreading rapidly in Leon County. In a computer search of skunk vine, I found excellent Tallahassee Democrat articles written by UF/IFAS volunteer writers in the past, including Karen Rose in 2015 and Connie Bersok in 2017, as well as a thorough description with photos and solutions from UF/IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants. This article is a reminder that this aggressive, twining perennial vine continues to lurk in our yards, park woodlands, and natural areas. Seek and destroy! Here is how.

First, sharpen your observation skills. Look around your yard for a vine with oppositely arranged leaves on long stems, up to 30 feet long that twine up shrubs and trees or along the ground. When you crush the leaves, you will detect a bad smelling stench (hence the name). When young, these vines are easy to overlook, as their green leaves blend in with the vegetation of the unsuspecting shrub or tree that it climbs. The leaves are pointy but may vary in size and shape. Each leaf is on a short petiole. I have found it winding through our azaleas and trying to cover our coonties. It is easiest to control when it is in this stage.

Try to find and remove skunk vine before it has time to make flowers and seed, as in this photo. Photo by Chris Evans, University of Illinois, Bugwood.org.

Second, untwine the vine from reachable vegetation and follow it back to the ground where you may be able to dig out its roots. If in a tree, pull the vine from the tree or cut it and then follow the vine to where the root is.

Third, carefully dispose of plant remains by bagging and placing in the trash. Skunk vine can spread vegetatively from stems that remain on the soil or by seed, which is probably spread by birds. Do not compost any of the plant. Do not place debris in a brush pile.

Fourth, if you cannot trace the plant back to its roots, pile the vine that you have pulled from a tree and spray it with an herbicide like Round-up while still connected to its roots. The leaves will absorb the herbicide and carry it down to the roots. Follow label instructions. Be careful of nearby vegetation. Herbicide treatment is more effective during the growing season, late spring and summer.

Skunk vine is more noticeable when it is blooming. It sports small tubular, light grayish pink or lilac flowers with red centers. If you see it in bloom, act fast because those multiple flowers will soon be producing abundant fruit that is small, spherical, and shiny brown, each containing two black seeds. They hang in clusters. A single large vine produces thousands of seeds in a single growing season. Remember to bag and discard those clusters of small brown fruit.

The flowers of a single large skunk vine can produce thousands of seeds in a single growing season. Photo by Peggy Greb, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Bugwood.org.

Why is this important? Skunk vine, native to Asia, was brought to Florida in 1897 as a potential fiber crop and was soon reported to be a ‘troublesome weed’. It is now listed on the Florida Noxious Weed List by the Florida Department of Agriculture, which means it cannot be sold, grown, imported, or transported. Too late! In 1993 it was labeled a Category I invasive species, which means that it is altering native plant communities by displacing native species or changing community structures or ecological functions, resulting in documented ecological damage.

Skunk vine, if not controlled, will eventually engulf native trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants. Its dense layer of leaves prevents sunlight from reaching the leaves of native plants. Our yards and natural areas begin to lose biodiversity as they are covered by skunk vine and other invasive vines such as Japanese climbing fern, English ivy, Asiatic jasmine, cat’s claw vine, Chinese wisteria, and others. With the loss of diversity of native vegetation, we lose the diversity of native insects which cannot digest plants that evolved in another part of the world. Less diversity in insects means less diversity in birds and other wildlife.

Protect the plants in your yard from skunk vine. Learn to recognize it while it is young for easy removal. Keep it from spreading into your neighbor’s yard and into our parks and natural areas. Seek and destroy!

Learn to Identify and Remove Invasive Plants

Coral ardisia is an aggressive invasive with glossy, dark green leaves and clusters of bright red berries in the winter. Photo by Jody Walthall.

Let’s talk about a threat to our nation. The threat is silent, ongoing, happening in our own yards and parks, and threatens our wild and natural areas, both wetlands and uplands. The State of Florida spends around $45 million a year on invasive plant control. The federal government spends an estimated $120 billion dollars a year.

There is something each of us can do in our own yards to address this problem. Let’s look at four plants that occur commonly in our yards of North Florida and South Georgia – coral ardisia, nandina, Chinese privet, and Japanese ligustrum (glossy privet). Learn to recognize these plants and work to remove or control them. All four are listed as Category 1 (the worst) Invasive Plants by the Florida Invasive Species Council.

Coral ardisia has glossy, dark green leaves usually on a vertical stem two to four feet tall. Lower on the stem are clusters of bright red berries in the winter. It is an attractive plant and that is why nurseries sold it and people shared it with each other many years ago. Ardisia spreads from yards into other yards, and then into natural areas, parks, and forests. It grows densely, crowding out native plants on the forest floor.

To remove them, first prune off the berry stems being careful to not drop any on the ground. Place them in bags and into a trash receptacle. Do not try to compost them or put them on the roadside for pickup by the city. They have an extremely high germination rate and will sprout wherever they land. After removing berries, dig all plants with a shovel. Pulling usually results in broken roots remaining in the soil to resprout. Watch for tiny seedlings, especially under the larger plants, and pull these as well.

Nandina is an invasive plant that is very toxic to birds. Photo by Jody Walthall.

Nandina is an old landscape plant with lovely fern like leaves and showy red berries. A classic example of nandina invading a natural area is the wooded land on the south side of Centerville Road near the Betton Road intersection in Tallahassee, where hundreds of them are growing beneath the native tree canopy. In beautiful Thomas County, Georgia, dozens of cedar waxwing birds died after gorging on nandina berries. Cyanide in the berries caused hemorrhaging in their lungs, liver, kidneys, heart, and brain, a terrible way to die. The University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine published the findings.

To remove nandina, follow the same procedure as with ardisia. Nandina roots, however, are very tough and difficult to dig. You will need an axe or mattock to cut the roots. If you do not have the strength to dig either nandina or ardisia, at least cut off the berries each year so they cannot spread further. Hiring a professional landscaper is also an option.

Chinese privet is an invasive shrub that can grow up to 25 feet in height. Photo by Jody Walthall.

Chinese privet is a common invasive shrub across North Florida. It has extended its range from N. Carolina to Kentucky, west to Texas, and south to Miami. It is even an alien invasive in Australia and Argentina. It can grow to 25 feet tall. White spring flowers have a strong fragrance, often described as malodorous. For removal, cutting large trunks and painting herbicides on the fresh cut may kill it, but roots may resprout. Though they may be large, plants are shallow rooted and can be dug using a mattock. Roots left in the ground may sprout. Monitor the area and keep digging for total removal.

Japanese ligustrum (Ligustrum lucidum), also known as glossy privet, is a fast-growing tree reaching 40 feet in height with a 35-foot crown spread. Like the Chinese privet, it has showy white malodorous spring blooms. Large clusters of purple/black berries ripen in fall and are popular with birds. The birds disperse the berries through droppings. The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences at the University of Florida (UF/IFAS) advises that this plant can be a nuisance, writing, “This plant should be treated with caution, may be recommended for planting, but managed to prevent escape.” Are we to ask the birds to please not eat the berries and spread them into our parks, forests, and yards? In my own yard this year alone, I have pulled up at least one thousand seedlings coming from a neighbor’s tree. This week I discovered another area in my yard where I counted 70 in one square yard!

Japanese ligustrum, also known as glossy privet, is a fast-growing tree that can easily be spread by birds. Photo by Jody Walthall.

As mentioned above, Japanese ligusturm can become a medium sized tree and may require a professional for removal. Homeowners can cut smaller ones and poison the stump with an herbicide with the active ingredient triclopyr, such as Brush-B-Gon. Use a small disposable brush to paint the outer half-inch circumference of the fresh cut stump. Here is a hint for identifying both Chinese privet and Japanese ligustrum – both have oppositely arranged leaves on their stems.

All four of these invasive species alter native plant communities causing ecological damage to natural ecosystems. They represent real threats to our nation’s wild areas, in addition to the nuisance they create in our own yards. Since they came from other parts of the planet, there are few natural insects or diseases in our country to control their spread. Without ongoing control and diligence on the part of homeowners, volunteers, and governmental agencies, the alien plants will eventually spread and crowd out our American native plants, upsetting our complex food webs, and disturbing the balance of nature.

I have started with these four recognizable invasive plants for homeowners to learn about. There are plenty of others lurking about our yards. If you have the physical ability to remove them, go for it. If not, hire a strong neighborhood teenager or pay for professionals. Let’s protect our native natural areas!

Some other invasive plant to remove include Chinese camphor tree, Chinese tallow tree, golden rain tree, Chinese elm, mimosa, cat’s claw vine, Japanese honeysuckle, Japanese climbing fern, air potato vine, skunk vine, and Chinese Wisteria.